Delay in universities bill unfair to students: Tawde

The previous Act was scrapped in August 2015, as the State wanted to introduce improved rules and regulations.

State education minister Vinod Tawde told HT that further delays will be detrimental to the working of universities across the state. (HT File Photo)

Implementation of the much-awaited Maharashtra Public Universities Bill 2015 might be delayed yet again, as the joint select committee put together to study the draft bill has not yet finished their task. This means universities across the state might have to wait until December. The previous Act was scrapped in August 2015, as the State wanted to introduce improved rules and regulations.

“The joint select committee was put together in March to specifically look at this important bill. It should have met at least eight times to finish the work, but it met only four times,” said a senior official requesting anonymity. Without the committee’s go ahead, there is a faint chance of the bill being tabled at the upcoming monsoon assembly session, which starts on Monday.

It was first tabled at the winter legislative session in Nagpur in December 2015, but did not come up for discussion for want of time.

It was tabled once again in the state budgetary session in March, where it was decided that the bill be placed in front of a joint select committee to look into objections against it.

State education minister Vinod Tawde told HT that further delays will be detrimental to the working of universities across the state.

“If the elected as well as nominated members running the universities are missing, it will affect students. It is unfair to them to delay the implementation of the bill,” he said.

With the scrapping of the Act in August 2015, many posts and bodies at state universities were abruptly scrapped.

The University of Mumbai is currently functioning without a pro-vice chancellor and permanent controller of examination. All its Board of Studies members have been appointed on an ad-hoc basis. The academic and management councils comprise of only nominated members, as other members can be elected only after the state Universities Act is in place.